Illinois Constitution Study
The following Illinois Constitution Study Guide is meant to supplement your own homeschool American history or government curriculum. Using these weblinks to helpful resources and printable pdf files will assist you in providing your home school student with a thorough examination of our State's Constitution. Links are provided to an online copy of the document, or you may contact your Illinois State Representative for a copy of the Illinois Handbook of Government which contains both the federal and state constitutions.
A final test is included; however, keys are not available. All answers can be easily found by studying the Constitution itself or the web pages to which the links direct you. Learning with our children is one of the great experiences we enjoy as homeschoolers.
Illinois: A Very Brief History of the State
Native American tribes of Illinois included the Illiniwek, from whence we get our name. The "discovery" of Illinois by settlers took place in 1673 by the two French explorers, Marquette and Joliet. The French and English both controlled the area at times. French forts and communities sprung up in the Illinois wilderness. Fort de Crevecoeur was established near Peoria in 1680, followed in 1682 by Fort St. Louis on Starved Rock. One of the first white villages, Pimitouri, later called Peoria was established in 1691. Cahokia was organized in 1699 and Kaskaskia four years later.
Illinois was established as a county of Virginia in 1778. In 1787 it became part of the Northwest Territory, in which it remained until 1800. In 1800 the territory of Indiana was established and Illinois became part of it. In 1809 Illinois and the present state of Wisconsin were made a territory. On December 3, 1818, Illinois was admitted as the 21st state. Kaskaskia was our first State Capital city. The capital was moved from Kaskaskia to Vandalia, and in 1839 the capital was moved to Springfield.
Our State Constitution: Some Background Information
In 1787, the United States Constitution set up a federal system of government giving some powers to the national government and other powers to the state and local governments. The U.S. Constitution told each state it must set up its own government and write its own constitution. States must have governments similar to the federal government, and the people of the state would elect their representatives. Illinois became a state in 1818 and had to have its own constitution before it could become a state. The U.S. Constitution gives certain responsibilities to the states. To carry these out, states have set up state constitutions. The first Constitution of Illinois was adopted in 1818 by a convention, which met in Kaskaskia.
In 1848 a new constitution was adopted. This constitution was noted for the increase of power to the people since they could now elect many government officials. In 1869 another new proposal met with success and became the new constitution in 1870.
In 1969, Illinois voters elected delegates to a new constitutional convention. The Constitution of 1870 had proven to be outdated, and it had been almost impossible to govern Illinois under such a document. A new constitution was written, adopted in convention on September 3, 1970, and approved by the voters on December 15, 1970. The Constitution of 1970 went into force on July 1, 1971. This is the current constitution under which Illinois functions.
The Illinois Constitution is similar in form to the U. S. Constitution. It has a preamble, articles which describe the branches of government-their powers and responsibilities, a bill of rights and amendments. Some major differences are that the federal document only has seven articles, but Illinois has fourteen. The Bill of Rights in the U. S. is the first ten amendments which are located at the end of the document. In Illinois, the Bill of Rights is the first article and amendments are simply changed in the articles.
The Illinois Constitution Study Guide
The preamble explains why the Constitution was written. Similar wording to the U. S. Constitution can be noticed, but readers should note the direction to be "grateful to Almighty God for the civil, political and religious liberty He has permitted us to enjoy and seeking His blessing upon our endeavors."
Article III establishes voting qualifications and election laws.
Amendments to the Illinois Constitution may be proposed either by a Constitutional Convention or by the General Assembly.